Series: Andrea Oliver #2
Author: Karin Slaughter
Publisher: William Morrow & Company
Released: August 23, 2022
Received: Own (BOTM)
Warnings: Rape, abuse, stalking, cults, starvation, fire

Wow! Two BOTM sequels in one month? I’m feeling pretty lucky right now! Girl, Forgotten is the sequel to the smash hit novel (and adaptation), Pieces of Her. Once again, I haven’t seen the adaptation so that I won’t be making any comparisons on that front.

The year is 1982, and Emily Vaughn should be happily preparing for her prom. Instead, she’s faced with a choice. Stay at home and hope everyone forgets about her secret, or head out and try to save her hopes and dreams. Ultimately, her choice will have a larger impact than she could have predicted.

In the present day, Andrea Oliver has just made her own drastic decision. She’s worked hard to become a US Marshal, against her mother’s wishes. Now she’s been handed the job opportunity of a lifetime – but it comes with some strings attached.

“Southern Cheap is, I’m gonna eat stale cookies while I serve you these fresh, warm buttered biscuits. Yankee Cheap is, I’ve got ten million dollars in the bank but I’m gonna cut off the thermostat during a blizzard and here’s my great-great-grandpa’s mothballed coat from the War of 1812 if you don’t have the character and fortitude to generate your own body heat.”

There are many reasons to pick up (and enjoy) Girl, Forgotten. If you read (or watched) Pieces of Her; if you enjoy tense thrillers; if you love unreliable narrators; if you love seeing a character take ownership of their past by making strong choices. Oh! And, of course, those classic Karin Slaughter twists.

Honestly, I wasn’t expecting this story to turn into a series. That being said, I really like where Andrea’s character arc is heading. The story has gone from a woman thrown into the deep end to a woman taking control of her life (and her past) by taking on a new and potentially dangerous job. In other words, it’s kinda turning into a detective series, but with a darker history. I like it.

Moving on. Girl, Forgotten is set in two distinct time periods, with two different perspectives. The first should be obvious – Andrea Oliver. Her new job has put her in a unique position to try and do something about her unusual family situation. I’ll leave it at that.

The second perspective was more of a surprise, but it’ll all make sense by chapter three or so. Thanks to everything she’s gone through, Emily Vaughn is one of those characters you want to hug and protect. The fact that we know the plot revolves around solving her murder certainly doesn’t help.

Long story short, I enjoyed Girl, Forgotten. It was a sharp thriller with lots of fun and enticing twists. I can’t wait to see where Andrea’s story goes from here!

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